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The Maison Martin Margiela for H&M collection hit stores on November 15. By Christmas, there was still merchandise left on the floor. This was unusual because H&M designer collaborations often sell out on the first few hours.

The Neiman Marcus and Target collaboration was hotly anticipated because it was the biggest ever project of its kind featuring over 20 designers and 50 products. Before the merchandise went on sale to the public, pieces from the collection were already up for bids on eBay, perhaps from invited shoppers at the New York pop-up event. Those eBay listings are now lingering in auction limbo. Why would you pay over and above the original retail price of say a Derek Lam skateboard ($99.99) when both Target and Neiman Marcus put it—and the rest of the pieces from the collaboration—on clearance at 70 percent off?

What does it mean that both these collaborations didn’t sell-out? Is this a factor of the economy? Are we not shopping as we used to? Or are we, as consumers, just worn-out of the bombardment of collaborations?

Full disclosure: I bought into these collaborations and others like them although most of the merchandise I purchased rarely made it out of the closet.

“In my opinion, it is in danger of reaching a saturation point,” said David Wolfe, creative director of trend forecasting agency The Doneger Group. “There are simply too many to generate the thrill that initially propelled customers into the store for these limited collection. The best collaborations were the first.”

Singapore-based blogger Bagaholicboy said: “Truth be told, my eyes now naturally roll whenever I hear off (or read about) about another new collab that's about to launch. There were so many in 2012 alone that the concept of it is beginning to become very stale, and if not managed properly could quickly die off in the years to come.”

Early designer collaborations like Isaac Mizrahi for Target in 2002 were such hits because the concept was new and it made a once unaffordable designer name available to the rest of us. Mizrahi x Target paved the way for future designer and retailer tie-ups.

“When Karl Lagerfeld signed on to do a collection for H&M, it was hot news. Furthermore, the merchandise looked like Karl had designed it. It had his “signature style” that previously had only been accessible to the wealthy. Nowadays, some designer that the public is virtually unaware of is touted and hyped,” added Wolfe.

Wolfe raises a valid point in that we hear of partnerships where the designer is relatively unheard of, a designer or young brand or blogger, whose image hasn’t not been communicated well yet, whose brand identity has yet to be established.

But there are those who believe that collaborations are here to stay. That we will, in fact, have many more of them, not necessarily to drive sales but more as vehicles to create brand awareness.

“We'll never escape it,” said Becca Alexander, editor of the website fashionindie.com. “Collaborations are becoming more about the marketing opportunities, less about the sales. Larger brands like H&M and Target need the "street cred" that comes with working with respected and up & coming designers, stylists, celebrities and more recently, bloggers. It's becoming less about the money being made and more about the attention these collaborations draw and because of that the market's getting a little crowded. I think the trend will be an increase in collaborations. We're going to see lesser known brands using it as a tool to get attention, collaborating on smaller capsule collections with companies like Edition01 or The Cools.”

“I think the collaboration movement will only grow as our world becomes smaller through easy dissemination of information via the internet,’ said Lisa Salzer, designer of Lulu Frost, which has collaborated with J. Crew. “As brands identities are more readily accessible, they will need to continue innovating in order to set themselves apart, and collaborating with other brands or designers is an easy way to achieve this individuality.”

But what makes a collaboration successful? Is it the names coming together? Product offering? Price point? Many argued that the MMM x H&M collection didn’t sell out because the prices were high compared to previous collaborations with Lanvin and Marni. Others have raised the point that the sheer size of the Target x Neiman Marcus collection only added to its downfall.

“Successful collaborations first begin because there is some logical connection between two brands, as in Lulu Frost for J.Crew or Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony. In these two cases, the parties involved had a reason to collaborate in the first place, and each brought value to the other. I think Lulu Frost has worked so well with J.Crew over the past three years of collaborating because we share certain values, like appreciating tradition but updating it with a modern twist. Chloe Sevigny for OC also worked so well because of their shared core values - both exude creativity and forward-thinking fashion senses,” said Salzer.

“Choosing the right items from the designer's collection to make. Having the PRs do their job and do their job well by building enough hype. Reasonable pricing that makes sense,” shared Hong Kong-based style blogger and collaboration fan Tina Leung of Tina Loves.

“Success is based on a lot of factors like the designer chosen, price point, quality (it should feel like luxury) and availability of the collection online. The person purchasing needs to feel like they are not only getting a great designer piece, but that it's priced right,” added Alexander.

In 2013, there will be plenty more designer collaborations like Duro Olowu x JC Penney, Milly x Banana Republic, Derek Lam x Kohl’s. How will these partnerships and others like them fare?